The 2021 SEA Games in Vietnam is not only a space for athletes’ revival. The multi-sporting event is also a symbol of the return of Southeast Asian countries that have been overwhelmed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
By
Kelvin Hianusa dan I Gusti Agung Bagus Angga Putra from Hanoi, Vietnam
·4 minutes read
KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO
The closing ceremony of the 2021 Vietnam SEA Games at the Vietnam Asian Indoor Game Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam, Monday (23/5/2022). Cambodia will host the 32nd SEA Games in 2023.
HANOI, KOMPAS – The 2021 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Vietnam is seen as a platform of revival. Competing athletes and the host country, as the organizer of the Games, have all shown that even in the worst times, there is always hope of rising again. This message of revival has echoed from the arena and across Southeast Asian countries.
Initially plagued by doubt, the Vietnam 2021 SEA Games ran smoothly until the closing ceremony on Monday night (23/5/2022) at the Vietnam Asian Indoor Games Stadium in Hanoi. Over 12 days, Southeast Asia’s best athletes competed for more than 1,000 medals in 40 sports and 526 events. A total of 30 records were broken at this year’s SEA Games.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the 31st SEA Games were postponed to 12-23 May 2022 from December 2021. This delay burdened several countries, including Indonesia, because the budget allocation for participating in the SEA Games was not originally planned for 2022. But Indonesia and other countries still sent their national contingents in the name of unity.
This was the point at which the camaraderie between Southeast Asian nations began. When it was suddenly confirmed that the SEA Games would be held, they did not abandon each other. All remained united in supporting Vietnam to host the SEA Games until the end.
The Games turned into an opportunity for Southeast Asian nations to unite against the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. The struggles athletes faced in the arenas mirrored their countries efforts to minimize the impacts of the pandemic.
Sacrifice, hard work and cooperation are all necessary to achieve victory. It is the same with the athletes, who made sacrifices and fought hard in the competitions to win medals.
“Although we had to compete amid the pandemic, there was a silver lining in terms of brotherhood. With shared strength, we can rise again,” Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said in his speech at the SEA Games closing ceremony, when host Vietnam presented the SEA Games Federation flag to the host of the 2023 SEA Games, Cambodia.
After sweating in races and matches, the athletes witnessed an entertaining but modest closing ceremony, with no fireworks show or striking choreography like at the opening ceremony.
KELVIN HIANUSA
Indonesian basketball team players celebrate after winning the first gold in the history of participating in the 2021 Vietnam SEA Games at Thanh Tri Indoor Stadium, Hanoi, on Sunday (22/5/2022). Indonesia ensured gold after conquering the defending champion since 1991, the Philippines, 85-81.
Rising from failure
The sound of revival echoing from the SEA Games arena was felt through the oversized screen. With regard to the Indonesian contingent, the basketball team was the star of this revival. Three years ago, Abraham Damar Grahita and his teammates played poorly at the 2019 SEA Games in the Philippines, their substandard performance sending them home without a medal.
Abraham said that event was his lowest point during his career with the national team. Yesterday, however, the Indonesian basketball team rose from the dead, winning a SEA Games gold for the first time in 45 years.
I cried [back then] because it was so embarrassing and painful [at Philippines 2019]. Now, I am crying for a different reason. Because we made history.
Indonesia beat the Philippines, a country with a strong basketball culture and the defending champion since 1991.
“I cried [back then] because it was so embarrassing and painful [at Philippines 2019]. Now, I am crying for a different reason. Because we made history,” Abraham said.
Indonesian badminton women’s doubles players Apriyani Rahayu and Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti also demonstrated this revival, winning gold after losing in the women’s team final a few days earlier.
They lost against world No. 8 Thai pair Jongkolphan and Prajongjai Rawinda, and then debut pair Apri and Fadia avenged their defeat in the individual quarterfinals to advance smoothly to the finals. There, they won against another Thai pair, Benyapa Aimsaard and Nuntakarn Aimsaard, making up for the team gold that Thailand claimed.
Indonesia finished third overall in the SEA Games with 69 gold medals, 91 silvers and 81 bronzes. This means that the Red and White team has moved up one place from the 2019 Philippines SEA Games. Host Vietnam emerged as the overall SEA Games champion with 205 golds, 125 silvers and 116 bronzes.
This achievement is in line with President Joko Widodo’s expectations, which he communicated on Monday (9/5), during his send-off of the Indonesian contingent to the Vietnam 2021 SEA Games at the State Palace. The President expressed his hope that Indonesia would achieve an overall rank of third, second or even first.
The country’s improved ranking is a revival in itself, considering that the Indonesian contingent went to Vietnam with around half the number of athletes on the Filipino team.
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